I Agree... This One is Long Overdue

Hey guys, Mikkel here,

It has been a while since I last sent you an edition of Off-Grid Plan-B.

That’s on me.

I know that when a newsletter goes quiet for a couple of months, it can be easy to assume things have slowed down.

…in this case, the opposite is true.

I have not been quiet because nothing is happening.

I have been quiet because there has been a tremendous amount happening.

When we first brought Veritas Villages to the Expat Money Community, there were plenty of people who understood the idea intellectually… but others wondered how large the market really was for this kind of community.

Would families really want this?

Would investors understand it?

Was the market for freedom-oriented living to this level really there? 

Would the market care enough about water, energy, privacy, community, self-sufficiency, and the ability to live with less dependence on external systems?

The answer has been astounding, yes.

Very clearly, yes.

Before we get into this edition of Off-Grid Plan-B, I will take a few moments to address one of the biggest questions people naturally have about off-grid living: Can you actually “live normally” Off-Grid? 

This is where a lot of people get stuck because they have trouble wrapping their heads around it, and I get it. We’ve been led to believe “Off-Grid” is synonymous with compromise.  

People like the idea of independence and agree with it in principle; however, then come practical questions, like: 

Can I run a real home here? 

Can I run lights, fans, appliances, air conditioning, hot water, and laundry?

Can I get through the night without constantly thinking about power?

These are the exact questions you should be asking… and they are the questions my partners at Veritas asked when the idea of building master-planned, self-sufficient communities was still just an idea.  

In today’s edition of Off-Grid Plan-B, we are going to discuss exactly this, so it becomes clear as day to you that Veritas homes ARE NOT SYNONYMOUS with compromise.

Let’s get into it,

A standard Veritas solar system includes 20 high-wattage 610W solar panels feeding two Veritas Alternative Energy batteries, each with 32 kWh of storage capacity. 

Together, that gives the home roughly 64 kWh of battery storage, managed through a 12 kW split-phase all-in-one off-grid inverter.

In plain English, the solar panels collect energy during the day, the batteries store it so the home can use it later, and the inverter manages the power so it can flow through the home efficiently. 

Think of this system like a private reservoir.

During the day, your system is “filling the reservoir” with energy from the sun that hits your solar panels.  

At night, when the sun is gone, your home draws from the reservoir (the stored energy in the batteries). 

The reason storage matters so much is that a home needs power not only when the sun is shining; it needs power in the evening, overnight, during cloudy periods, in rain, and during the ordinary routines of real life.

That is why these systems are intentionally sized generously. 

When you are designing a home to operate off-grid, you do not size the system for the perfect sunny day… you size it for real-life use and real-world variables. 

Cloudy days. 

Rainy days.

The extra energy usage when you have friends or family visiting.

At Veritas, living without constantly wondering whether you have enough energy to make it through the evening is a given.  

Veritas homes are designed as complete systems, not as conventional houses that have solar panels slapped on top as an afterthought.

The insulation, roof, windows, appliance configurations and home designs/placements all have to work together in order for the homeowner to have their energy needs met with the “flip of a switch”, just as if the home were connected to the grid. 

Achieving this is, of course, easier said than done. 

Behind that simple “flip of a switch” experience is a tremendous amount of planning and expertise.

This is where many people misunderstand the complexity of having a solar setup that can effectively meet their demands.

“How many solar panels are on the roof?” is the wrong question. 

The better question is:

“Has the entire home been designed to maximize the efficiency of the entire energy system - from generation to storage to consumption?”

A standard Veritas home is designed around efficiency and utilizes sensible energy choices where they make the most sense, including gas on-demand hot water heaters instead of electric, gas clothes dryers instead of electric, gas ranges instead of electric, high-efficiency appliances, and energy-efficient windows. 

Using electricity for everything inside an off-grid home is like insisting on carrying all your groceries in one hand. You technically could, but why would you when you have two hands or a capable friend there to help? 

When gas handles certain high-demand functions, the solar and battery system can focus on what it does best, and the entire home becomes more efficient, resilient, and comfortable.

Now, I get a lot of this may sound like “technical mumbo jumbo” to many of you reading this, so allow me to simplify things:

The “standard systems” I have just discussed are designed to provide ample energy generation and storage for a standard 2- or 3-bedroom single-family home operating entirely off-grid (and this is our minimum standard). 

The larger homes will have even larger systems and storage capacity as a standard (even some of our 3-bedroom home models are spec'd with the larger systems, with some boasting the larger 96 kWh capacity). 

The systems are designed to allow normal operation of the home, maintaining a comfortable interior temperature while all standard appliances are used just as you would in a grid-connected home.

Plus, homeowners will also be able to monitor their energy generation in real time from their phones, so you aren’t ever left wondering if you’ll “have enough power for that”.

With the systems, homeowners can see how much energy is being produced, how much is being stored, and how the system is performing.

Given that there are different sized home models available, I want to make it clear that the solar energy systems used are built at varying scales; a smaller home might sit closer to 40-60 kWh of battery capacity, a mid-sized home will typically have 60 kWh, whereas a larger home can push upwards of 90 kWh or more depending on size, layout, client needs, and appliance demands.

Even though these systems are generously sized, Veritas homes are also designed with dedicated expansion space for optional auto-start generator backup systems, giving clients who want maximum peace of mind another layer of redundancy.

For some people, the standard solar-and-battery setup will be more than enough.

For others, especially those who want maximum energy self-sufficiency, the option to add an auto-start generator backup system is worth considering (especially if you use an outsized amount of energy for hobbies, projects like bitcoin mining, or welding). 

I’ve mentioned the Veritas homes a few times, so to give yourself an idea of the different home models available, you can visit this page here: See the different Veritas Home Models Here

My partners and I have continued travelling, studying markets, walking land, evaluating regions, meeting local contacts, and looking throughout Latin America for the right places to bring the Veritas model next.

El Salvador and Argentina were two focal points for our evaluation endeavours (other markets have been studied carefully).

…and after much debate and evaluation, I am thrilled to announce that the first master-planned Veritas Village that is designed from a “blank slate” to exist outside of Panama will be in Costa Rica!

We have already secured an incredible piece of land in a breathtaking region of the country; however, I am going to refrain from sharing too much about it now (you’ll understand why shortly). 

This is a major milestone, and I do not want to rush past the complexity or significance. 

Choosing land for a Veritas community is NOT LIKE choosing land for a normal residential subdivision.

A typical developer focuses mainly on access, zoning, price, and the number of lots that can be carved out of the site.

Those things matter, of course, but they’re only just the beginning.

Before we’d ever move forward, the land has to prove it can support everything Veritas stands for. 

Water is one of the first questions.

Where does it come from? Is there a reliable year-round water source?

What happens in the dry season?

What happens in the rainy season?

How does the land drain?

Where does water naturally move? Is there year-round availability?

Can water be captured, stored, protected, and distributed responsibly?

How does the land behave in the wet season?

How does it behave in the dry season?

Then comes sunlight.

A community that relies heavily on solar energy needs enough open exposure to make that model practical. 

The land cannot be so heavily shaded, boxed in, or poorly oriented or else every future home built will have an uphill battle to fight, so to speak. 

Then comes food production.

Where can orchards go?

Where is the soil most suitable?

Where can food systems be integrated naturally into the land rather than forced into some inconvenient corner?

Then comes topography.

Can the land support beautiful homesites without brutal amounts of work? 

Can roads be built? 

Can the master plan preserve the site's natural character while still making the community practical to live in?

…and only once those questions are answered, can the question of access be addressed. 

A Veritas community needs to feel private, secure, and removed from the world's nonsense, but not so remote that daily life becomes a burden.

That balance is not easy to find.

This is why international expansion has been given serious consideration, and the search has not been quick.

Now that those questions are answered and the perfect piece of land has been purchased, it is time for a deeper explanation.

…and now I can finally share the news with you. 

Join me live on July 25th at 10am, Panama Time, where I'll walk you through our biggest announcement yet - our expansion into Costa Rica.

During this session, I’ll be joined by Patrick Hiebert, Founder & CEO of Autris, to walk you through the Veritas story from the inside - how the original village came together, what we learned in Panama, and why Costa Rica became the obvious next step.

Here are the details you’ll need to join live:

This will be one of the most important Veritas presentations we have hosted, and I highly encourage all of you reading this right now to spend a moment and secure your seat (free) in the presentation room.

If you are brand new to the idea of off-grid living, or even if you are the type of person who never once considered this type of living viable for your family, you should be in the presentation room on the 25th.

It will be extremely informative and educational, and it will open your eyes to possibilities that, until now, were virtually nonexistent. 

Register Right Now: Register For The Special Presentation

I’ll see you live on July 25th.

Speak soon,
Mikkel

PS. Construction continues to ramp up at Veritas, Coronado. More homes are moving through the build process, more lots are being prepared for construction, and more families are getting closer to calling Veritas home. Here is a small glimpse into one of the several homes currently under construction inside Veritas, Coronado!